John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)
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Question 32: To ask the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism his views on the expected impact of the decentralisation of his Department to Killarney in 2007 in terms of the numbers of persons with disabilities employed by the Department in the short term; the transfer rate of persons with disabilities from Dublin to Killarney compared with other employees; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26958/06]

John O'Donoghue (Kerry South, Fianna Fail)
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Currently, over 4% of staff in my Department are persons with disabilities which exceeds the 3% requirement under the Disability Act 2005. However, all staff transferring into the Department with a view to decentralising to Killarney are recruited through the Central Applications Facility (CAF) conducted by the Public Appointments Service. The protocol for assigning officers from the CAF was agreed centrally and my Department is complying with this protocol which operates largely on a seniority basis.

It is possible therefore that, in the short-term, the overall number of persons with a disability employed in my Department may fall below 3%. However, the Deputy may rest assured that, in the longer term, my Department will take all necessary steps to increase the percentage to at least comply with the requirement under the Disability Act.